TWO highly contrasting victories gave Guernsey the unbeaten start they wanted yesterday in the ICC European Division One T20 Championship. They sit proudly on top of group A with Italy the other side to record a pair of wins on the opening day. However, while the home side began with a thumping 10-wicket success against Norway yesterday morning at the KGV, they were given an almighty scare by Croatia at the College Field later in the day before eventually coming through with a valuable three-wicket triumph.

‘As I expected, this is going to be a challenging tournament,’ said Guernsey coach Andy Cornford. ‘There is so much at stake, all the teams are up for it and being a short game it means everybody is in the pot to progress – it does not matter where you are ranked. We had a very comfortable win in the first game, but were then pushed very hard in the second. But we have won two from two and that’s what we wanted from the first day.’

Croatia can feel hard done by to have ended the opening day with nothing to show for their efforts as in the morning round of matches they lost another thriller to Italy by one wicket. Meanwhile, at Port Soif, Austria edged out Gibraltar by only six runs. In the afternoon session, Norway came away with an eight-wicket win over Gibraltar at Port Soif while Italy beat Austria by seven wickets at the KGV.

The Guernsey bench bite their nails anxiously ICC/CricketEurope

‘Coach hails Hooper as Guernsey edge home’

GUERNSEY showed how crucial a long batting line-up can be as they played their get-out-of-jail-free card yesterday afternoon. Against a pumped up Croatia side, the hosts almost came a cropper at the College Field in their second match of the ICC European Division One T20 Championship.

A victory target of 98 looked straightforward enough, even on a pitch that had not yielded a triple-figure score in three previous innings during the day. However, after Guernsey had struggled to 46 for five in the 11th over, hope almost ended as captain Stuart Le Prevost was the sixth wicket to fall for 34 with 33 still needed and just four overs remaining.

Tim Duke shows determination in his bowling ICC/CricketEurope

But David Hooper and Jamie Nussbaumer rose to the challenge magnificently and took their side to the brink of victory before an unfortunate run out saw Hooper depart for 19 with four still needed. Nussbaumer though took it upon himself to secure the required runs, finished unbeaten on 19 and take Guernsey into the second day of the competition unbeaten. ‘I am very pleased for David Hooper, who has come into the side and come into a pressure situation and applied himself really well to the task,’ said Guernsey coach Andy Cornford. ‘His innings was one of the main reasons we got over the line. Jamie’s cameo is one of the areas we have been looking at and he came in and gave us the impetus we needed.’

David Hooper and Jamie Nussbaumer during their match-winning partnership ICC/CricketEurope

Having shone with the ball against Norway earlier in the day, it was not a track ideally suited to Nussbaumer in the afternoon as he and new-ball partner Tim Duke bowled just a couple of overs apiece in the Croatia innings. Instead, Le Prevost turned to spin for the majority of his overs and it proved a shrewd move after Croatian openers Paul Vujnovich and Christopher Pivac had got their side off to a decent start. Once the pace was taken off the ball, so the run-rate slowed considerably and wickets began to fall.

GH Smit fails to get his leg over in his attempt at a run out ICC/CricketEurope

Nussbaumer joined Hooper and 31 were still needed off the final four overs. That became 25 off three as left-arm spinner Craig Sinovich conceded just six from his second, and what was to be his last, over. Critically, Hooper found the first boundary in what seemed like an eternity in the next over, which realised nine runs in total for Guernsey, making the equation 14 from 12 balls. They needed just half. The decision to recall Michael Grzinic into the attack and put pace on the ball backfired for Croatia and they were made to pay a heavy price. Hooper took a single off the first ball before Nussbaumer put his foot down the track and launched the second delivery over long on for six, which was greeted by a relieved cheer from the home supporters. Although he did not connect as well with the next, the three runs over mid-wicket were roared too. Perhaps now running too high on adrenalin, non-striker Nussbaumer called Hooper through for a suicidal single on the fourth ball and ran his partner out. That was harsh on Hooper, who deserved to be there at the end, but Nussbaumer made amends by picking up a pair of twos on the final couple of balls of the over and Guernsey were home, somehow with an over to spare.

Tim Ravenscroft in unfamiliar pose ICC/CricketEurope

Jeremy Frith picked up Pivac, caught by Kris Moherndl at deep mid-wicket, before Paul Vujnovich was run out by GH Smit after hesitating to respond to a call. Tim Ravenscroft claimed a couple of scalps too, Hooper taking a good catch at square leg to remove John Vujnovich before Craig Wear was trapped right in front of the stumps. There was a further wicket for Frith, one for Gary Rich and another run out as Croatia limped to 97 for seven from their 20 with all four Guernsey spinners – GH Smit completing the quartet – finishing with extremely economical figures.

Gary Rich is congratulated by his Guernsey colleagues ICC/CricketEurope

However, any thoughts that Guernsey would coast to another victory were quickly dispelled as they were reduced to four for two within the opening two overs with Ravenscroft and Ross Kneller back in the hutch and Michael Grzinic and John Vujnovich bowling well. Frith and Le Prevost set about repairing the damage, but just as they started to look settled, Jeffrey Grzinic was introduced to the attack and Frith chipped a catch straight to mid-wicket. When Smit and Moherndl fell in consecutive overs to leave Guernsey 46 for five, alarm bells were ringing. Le Prevost looked to be the saving grace for a while as he helped Hooper through the early stages of his innings and together they added 19 runs. But the twists kept coming. Having reached 34, the skipper looked to exploit a gap over mid-wicket but succeeded only in getting a leading edge straight up in the air, which was safely pouched by David Lambasa.